Fact Check: Michael Jordan Said If Kids Can Afford $8 Coffees, They Can Pay Their Student Loans?

Claim:

Michael Jordan said, "If these kids can afford $8 cups of coffee, they can afford to pay their own student loans."

Rating:

Labeled Satire ( About this rating? )

According to a rumor circulating online, NBA legend Michael Jordan made a comment about "kids" who buy expensive coffee and complain about paying off student loans.

For example, one Facebook user posted ( archived ) a quote meme on Aug. 18, 2024, featuring a photo of Jordan and the words, "If these kids can afford $8 cups of coffee, they can afford to pay their own student loans."

The rumor circulated amid political disagreements over initiatives by U.S. President Joe Biden's administration to forgive some people's student loans. Users shared the quote meme with the alleged quote by Jordan on both Facebook and X .

However, the truth was, Jordan never made the statement about $8 coffees and student loans. The rumor originated with a Facebook page that claims to specialize in satire and parody.

Where the Rumor Began

The Facebook page, America's Last Line of Defense (ALLOD), originally posted the meme on Aug. 16. The post had the caption, "The average college student spends more than $800 a month on coffee and takeout. But sure,,, [sic] we should pay their loans for them."

Over 47,000 users shared the post over four days. The post also received more than 185,000 likes and nearly 10,000 comments.

ALLOD is a network of Facebook pages and websites that describes its output as being humorous or satirical in nature. For example, the description for the in-question ALLOD Facebook page displays a "satire/parody" label and says, "The flagship of the ALLOD network of trollery. Nothing on this page is real."

Some Users Seemed to Believe Jordan Made the Comment

Some readers — in particular, commenters on ALLOD's original post with the meme — seemed to interpret the rumor about Jordan as a factual recounting of real-life events.

For example, one comment with hundreds of reactions read, " Don't forget the new I phones and tv subscription. They took out the loan, they need to pay for it. We saved for our kids school instead of taking vacations and new cars. I'm not paying for their loans."

Another user whose comment also received hundreds of reactions said, "It's about choices folks. You are correct .. if they prefer to spend their money on tattoos, 8.00 cups of coffee and high dollar car leases while they are in college… they should also be planning on how many years THEY will be paying off those student loans."

Background on the Rumor's Source

ALLOD claims to make up rumors to "troll" conservative readers. The network calls them "taters."

The ALLOD-associated website Dunning-Kruger Times describes "taters" as "the conservative fans of America's Last Line of Defense" who "are fragile, frightened, mostly older caucasian Americans" and "believe nearly anything." The page continues, in part, "Our mission is to do our best to show them the light, through shame if necessary, and to have a good time doing it."

Snopes has addressed other satirical claims about Jordan in the past, including the fictional story about him supposedly saying he wanted to "slap some sense" into former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

For background, here is why we alert readers to rumors created by sources that call their output humorous or satirical.

Sources:

Binkley, Collin. "More Republican States Sue to Block Biden's Student Loan Repayment Plan." The Associated Press , 9 Apr. 2024, https://apnews.com/article/student-debt-cancellation-college-forgiveness-f94b9706bd395b32e44d4d1b3f6ff051 .

Sheffey, Ayelet. "Student-Loan Borrowers Can Expect More Debt Relief before Biden's Term Is up, a Top White House House Official Says." Business Insider , 19 Aug. 2024, https://www.businessinsider.com/student-loan-borrowers-expect-more-debt-cancellation-zients-biden-relief-2024-8 .